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Inter-county travel restrictions and limits on domestic visitors are expected to be eased by Christmas, according to plans for a staggered exit from the lockdown being reviewed by the government.
Earlier this week, Taoiseach Micheál Martin confirmed that moving to Level 3 of the Living with Covid-19 phased plan by December 1 was the “goal.”
Under Tier 3, individuals must remain within their county unless traveling for work, education, or other essential reasons, and home visits are limited to another home.
The government is expected to consider further relaxation of inter-county travel restrictions and home visits specifically for the Christmas period in late December, the sources said.
This would allow families to celebrate Christmas together where people live in different counties and, to some extent, for people to get together and socialize with friends.
Speaking on Friday, Mr. Martin said that people will not “go to the whip” or to the Christmas holidays, when Ireland comes out of lockdown next month.
The plan to exit Level 5 was still being worked out and the government would advise people of the restrictions that would apply before December 1, so that they can make preparations, he said.
“The fact that we are doing well gives us flexibility … I want a meaningful Christmas, we cannot be on Level 5 forever,” he told RTÉ News at One.
“We all trust here. We have learned from Level 2, what worked and what didn’t, ”he said. People will not “go to the whip” or to Christmas parties, he said. “It won’t be the same Christmas as last year.”
Churches and pubs
Martin said he expected churches to be open for church services on Christmas week. He also said that he would prefer to see the blocking measures lifted at the national level, rather than at different times at the regional level.
Martin said reopening pubs that don’t serve food would be challenging and faced “real problems.”
The National Public Health Emergency Team (Nphet) will consider what level of relaxation of boundaries in family and social gatherings could be allowed during the holiday period.
A government source said the timing of any relaxation of limits on inter-county travel and home visits or family gatherings was still uncertain.
Another source warned that while “a number of options” were being considered for the Christmas period, the decision would finally be made in the last week of November, adding: “The lower we can get the case numbers, the R rate, the hospitalizations, the more flexibility the government will have. We have another three weeks left and the trend is positive. “
In announcing the six-week national lockdown on October 19, Martin urged people to come together to suppress the spread of the coronavirus, to allow the country to “celebrate Christmas in a meaningful way.”
The extent to which current measures will be relaxed from early December will depend on Nphet’s model of the virus at the end of this month, the sources said.
Restaurants and pubs serving food are expected to reopen, however officials have noted that pubs serving only drinks may be limited to take-out services.
The winegrowers’ lobby is likely to be firmly opposed to maintaining current restrictions on so-called “wet pubs,” who have said that not allowing all pubs to reopen during the traditionally busy Christmas period will force many out of business.
Trips abroad
On Thursday, Medical Director Dr. Tony Holohan said it was “too early” for people to make plans for the holiday season.
Large social gatherings involving alcohol and other “normal” Christmas activities, such as office parties and large family gatherings, “will not be possible,” he said.
Dr Holohan also said that Irish living abroad should not plan to travel home this Christmas, due to the risk of importing Covid-19 cases into the country.
“Travel that normally happens at Christmas should be considered non-essential this Christmas,” he said.
Similarly, Tánaiste Leo Varadkar said that people who intend to go home from abroad for Christmas should not book flights “for now” due to uncertainty.
The aviation industry had “canceled the next two months” and was instead preparing for spring 2021, Martin said. Echoing the statements of Dr. Holohan and Mr. Varadkar, he said: “We don’t want too many people to travel from the red zones to Ireland.”
Commenting on the recent vote in the Northern Ireland Executive on lifting the restrictions, Mr Martin said that the inter-community veto should not have been used in relation to public health. He said he had contacted the Northern Ireland Executive to express his concerns.
“From the beginning, we have had different perspectives. Glad they continue with various restrictions. Their number is worryingly high. The spillover effect is there, ”he said.
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